The world empties. The dog stays.

The Dog Stars opened at the end of August, which is when studios hide the movies that do not have a toy. Fair. This one is based on the Peter Heller novel: a man, a dog, a quiet country after a plague, and the question of whether you still go looking for other people. I went in worried it would explain the end of the world until there was nothing left to feel. It does not. It lets the empty do the work.

Is it slow? Yes. That is the point. The dog is the best actor in it, which I mean as a compliment. If you wanted a summer explosion, you already missed your month. If you wanted a movie that treats silence like a plot, this is the one still in theaters this weekend. I give it three out of four Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

Go. It is sad on purpose and it earns the quiet. Three out of four Reese's.